Teacher speaks of months of hell (From Penarth Times)

Teacher speaks of months of hell

A FORMER Headlands School teacher has told of his "nine month hell" after being cleared of charges relating to the Operation Goldfinch child sex abuse inquiry.

Father-of-three George Best, 68, was charged last September with 17 counts of indecent assault on a male, three counts of serious sexual offence and four counts of cruelty to a child under the age of 16.

But on the day of the trial at Cardiff Crown Court in June, the prosecution indicated it was withdrawing the indecent assault and serious sexual offence charges, and one of the cruelty charges, all of which Mr Best firmly denied.

Mr Best, who taught science at the school from 1961 until 1990, entered pleas of guilty to three allegations of over chastisement, namely that corporal punishment was used upon three named individuals.

But he was given an absolute discharge by his honour Judge D Wynn Morgan who said the case had no allegations of any sexual impropriety and was wholly different to any other case in Operation Goldfinch. He talked of Best's blameless character and ill-health.

Mr Best, who says he has suffered both mentally and physically as a result of the case, said:

"It's been hell, for me and my family.

"To be even accused is painful. I've felt concern about the truth and human nature.

"Perhaps truth did prevail in the end, what we got was the closest we could get to it."

He added: "People in Penarth are very sceptical now about the whole thing. All I was doing was my job."

* The long-running Operation Goldfinch campaign was launched by South Wales Police in April 1997.

It is an investigation into alleged physical and sexual abuse of children in child care establishments in the South Wales area.